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A rare strain of the disease has turned up on Long Island that can cause anxiety in children. Danielle Elias reports. (Published Wednesday, July 30, 2014)

Updated at 12:21 PM EDT on Wednesday, Jul 30, 2014

A Long Island boy has been diagnosed with a rare strain of Lyme disease after playing in a wooded area with friends recently, and one Suffolk County doctor says the disease seems to be infecting people at an alarming rate this summer.

The 13-year-old boy began to get sick two weeks after he was bitten by the bug, suffering a fever and "excruciating" headaches, according to his mother Christine Brennan.

"I thought I saw a new birthmark on his knee, but it was really a tick," said Elva Guerra.

Carlos was too young to realize what had happened to him, but his mother did.

"Reading how it affects the nervous system sometimes and how the joints get swollen, and to think that our son, who's only 2 years old, was going to go through that, it's really, really scary," said Guerra.

Persheff said both strains of Lyme disease are curable, if treated properly with antibiotics.

Hundreds of cases of tick-borne illnesses are reported every year across New York.

A doctor with the Suffolk County Health Department said there are typically three kinds of ticks found in the northeast, and are typically in areas of high vegetation like grass and trees.

He warns the public that if you do venture out in these areas, considered "tick territories," it is best to wear long pants, tuck the pants into socks and wear repellent.